Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free
Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world
Donald Trump is planning to announce a new trade pact with the UK on Thursday, people familiar with the talks said, in what could make Britain the first country to ease commercial tensions with Washington.
Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday that a “Big News Conference” was coming “concerning a MAJOR TRADE DEAL WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF A BIG, AND HIGHLY RESPECTED, COUNTRY”.
The expected UK-US deal is one of 17 agreements that the Trump administration has been aiming to sign with its major trading partners as it rows back on the sweeping tariffs on countries around the world announced on April 2.
The US president has been under pressure to deliver some early deals to show investors that he is serious about de-escalating the trade tensions that have caused huge volatility in markets in recent weeks.
But US officials have also insisted that a wide range of countries have made offers to Washington in the hope of clinching deals to put a lid on their trade disputes with Trump.
The scope and details of the pact expected on Thursday with the UK was not clear, including whether further negotiations will be needed to finalise it, and how much relief from US tariffs Britain will get.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that Washington and London were close to agreeing a trade pact that would offer lower-tariff quotas for British cars and steel exports, which were hit with 25 per cent levies by Trump earlier this year.
Such tariff relief would help offset the impact of Trump’s “liberation day” levies on UK exports to the US — which were set at the baseline rate of 10 per cent last month.
Trump administration officials have also been holding talks with multiple countries including Japan, Vietnam, India and the EU, but the fate of those talks is uncertain.
Meanwhile, US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent is set to travel to Switzerland on Thursday ahead of talks with Chinese officials on trade. Tensions between Washington and Beijing have triggered fears of a damaging decline in trade between the world’s two largest economies.
Trump’s shift towards trade negotiations followed a sell-off in global stock markets early last month after the US hit many trading partners with “reciprocal” tariffs of up to 50 per cent. However, he then lowered those tariffs to the 10 per cent baseline rate for 90 days to give room for negotiation, contributing to a rebound in equity prices.
As well as a backlash from investors, Trump has faced recriminations from Democrats and even some Republicans who believe his sweeping tariffs are damaging the economy and risk reigniting inflation. Polls have shown that Americans are souring on Trump’s handling of the economy.
However, Trump and his top officials have continued to defend their tariff policies on the grounds that they want to reset the global economy so the US produces more domestically and is less reliant on imports — even if it brings some short-term disruption.
The White House and the British embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
The New York Times first reported that Thursday’s trade announcement related to the UK.
